Our 13-acre farm in Indianola includes a little less than two cultivated acres, a yurt meadow, barn, packing shed, wooded area, open fields and habitat for birds and other wildlife. Biodiversity is key to our success. We provide our customers with a wide array of vegetables and flowers while maintaining a balanced ecosystem in our gardens.

Our CSA orientation is June 7, 5:30–7:30 p.m. Please bring your family and join us for an evening at the Farm. See your summer vegetables growing! Enjoy hors d’oeuvres, taste a leaf of sweet fennel or sour sorrel as we stroll the fields and meet our hard-working interns. We’ll explain our pickup system and you’ll have the opportunity to signup for optional add-on shares. These will be delicious ways to support other local producers, and an opportunity to collect an even more abundant basket each week. At the end of the evening, take home your first vegetables of this season! (subscribers received an email from Rebecca with additional details.)

Shares Available

We are very excited to see this program starting for another glorious season. If you know of others who might be interested in joining us, please spread the word that shares are still available. If you refer someone who subscribes, we’ll thank you with a free box of veggies and, of course, a huge hug and many thanks.

We look forward to meeting all of our new subscribers and seeing the familiar faces of friends and neighbors. Contact Rebecca if you have questions. And be sure to follow us on Instagram @persephonefarmer!

The peas will inch up their waiting trellises, the carrots will be more than orange threads and the dahlias will burst above the soil surface. No one knows better than the farmers what an UNUSUAL spring this has been.

The intrepid interns and I have been suiting up in our raingear and heading out into the fields in anticipation of the start of the CSA on June 7th. Surely there will be bounty by then. Lots of vibrant green goodness!

We’d love to have you join us for another season of Community Supported Agriculture. Your subscription keeps our little farm chugging along.

Or, if you’re ready for an early season infusion of freshness, come on by our booth at the Bainbridge Island Farmer’s Market on Saturdays between 9-1. There you can pay by cash, check or credit card and take advantage of the 10% subscriber discount.

Rebecca and the interns brave the soggy spring weather.

We’d love to see you and introduce you to the wonderful new team of aspiring young farmers: Sean, Amanda, Chelsea and Mackenzie, all hailing from points East. You can do me a favor and assure them that, yes, it does eventually warm up and become beautiful in the Pacific Northwest. I think they’re starting to worry the gray skies will never lift and our boots will remain permanently attached to our feet.

New this season are some gloriously beautiful new flower varieties, the return of our cherished French Pink garlic, English shelling peas, several hefty heirloom tomatoes we’ve never grown before and the installation of a new well!

Please tell your friends about Persephone. Your referrals will be rewarded with an extra box of veggies. And our heartfelt gratitude.

Look who stopped by our stand at the Bainbridge Island Farmers’ Market last week! Governor Jay Inslee was asking for ideas on how to spruce up his leek soup recipe. We were happy to provide some inspiration! We’ve got lots of spring greens, leeks and flowers. Come visit us at the market Saturdays, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Cheerful flowers on the opening day of the Bainbridge Island Farmers’ Market.

Now is the time to forage (carefully!) for nettles or find them at the farmers market. Thanks to Marcia Newlands for bringing this spring recipe to our attention!

Nettle Risotto

(Serves 2 as a main, 4 as an appetizer)

Blanched, nettles will keep their emerald loveliness even after a good 15 minutes of cooking, which makes this risotto visually stunning. The dish itself is pretty simple: Risotto rice, cooked nettles, butter, shallot, garlic, a little pecorino cheese and beef stock. The basic structure of this risotto holds with all sorts of variations. You could use a different grated cheese, such as parmigiano or a Greek mizithra.

Note: Depending what variety your nettles are, you will need four or five big tongs-fulls of fresh nettles to get your cup of cooked nettles. Regular nettles (urtica dioica) are more substantial than their daintier cousins, the dwarf nettle (urtica urens) and retain more of their volume when cooked. I say tongs-full because you do not want to pick up fresh nettles, as they will sting you. Thus the name.

1 cup risotto rice

1 cup cooked, drained nettles or spinach (see note above)

2-3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2-3 tablespoons grated pecorino cheese

1 large shallot, minced

3 minced garlic cloves

4 cups chicken, vegetable, or beef stock

Salt

Get a large pot of water boiling and add a handful of salt. Add the nettles. Stir and boil for 1-2 minutes for dwarf nettles, about 5 minutes for regular nettles. When done cooking, dump them into a big bowl with ice water in it. Once they are cool, put them in a colander to drain. Put the nettles in a clean tea towel and twist to squeeze out as much moisture as you can. Chop the nettles finely (a food processor will turn them mushy). The finer you chop, the smoother your risotto will be. Remove any stray stems.

To make the risotto, heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large heavy pot set on medium-high. Wait until the butter stops frothing and add the shallot. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and rice and stir to combine. Stirring constantly, cook for a minute or so or until all the rice is well coated with butter. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the first cup of stock. Turn the heat to high and stir in the rice. When it starts boiling strongly, turn the heat down to medium and stir often, at least every minute or so, until the rice absorbs the stock. Repeat with a second cup of stock. When the second cup is absorbed, add the nettles and the third cup of stock. Stir well to combine. Keep stirring constantly to develop the creaminess in the risotto. Taste the risotto, and add salt if needed. It may need the remaining cup of stock, as you want the dish to be loose. Add the butter and cheese and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes, stirring often. Serve at once.